Sunday, May 12, 2013

AFN Presidency: How Ogba schemed Gadzama, Abdulkarim

Ogba...craftily and foxily lures 'enemies'

*Minister’s name
dragged in to the politicking

*Succession plan
organised as campaign strategy

As part of the desperate
efforts to return as the President of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria
(AFN), Mr. Solomon Ogba having failed with confusing the National Olympic
Committee (NOC) and the National Sports Commission (NSC) in respect of the
international federation members has devised a new means.

He succeeded half way
and failed half way. He was able to lure into his fold 4x400m Sydney Olympic
gold medallist Tafida Gadzama and Tunde Abdulkarim while he could not secure
the duo of Dr. Gloria Chukwukere and former international, Falilat Ogunkoya.

The gist is, Ogba realized
that two people are likely to contest with him on the seat for the Presidency
of the federation. Professor Tunde Makanju who is regarded as ‘too straight to
be bent’ and former athlete, TAfida Fidelis Gadzama. To recruit Gadzama, his
team and his errand boy called Special Assistant, Enefiok Udo-Obong worked on
Gadzama and delivered a juicy invitation to Doha, Qatar.

Gadzama fell for the
bait. Elected member of the AFN from the South-East, Dr. Gloria Chukwukere was
to be worked on by Maria Woophil, the AFN Secretary General. Chukwukere got an
invitation to Doha a day after her election. She refused to fall for the bait.

Former Nigerian quarter
miler, Falilat Ogunkoya (MON) got the same bait. She was so pressurized and
practically begged but she stood her grounds, refused the offer and did not
travel.

Former Accountant
General of Kwara state, an ICAN fellow, “fell for the tout’s bait” said a
former national team athlete in his angry demand to know from this reporter if
he travelled to Doha. He asked, “what does this man want from a motor park
tout”?

The former athlete
added, “you know what, Ogba told him that he would emerge as first Vice
President. And that he (Ogba) would do just one term and hand over to him
(Abdulkarim) as President.”

In the bid to get
Gadzama, said the former athlete, “sport minister’s name was variously dropped.
Gadzama told some of my friends that he had a meeting with Ogba and the sports
minister in the Transcorp where the minister diplomatically asked him to work
for Ogba’s emergence.”

We called on the
minister’s assistant, Julius Ogunro who angrily said, “I am sufficiently close
to the minister to know he would not descend so low to that level. He abhors
Transcorp as a principle.”

Later
in the evening, the minister responded to an e-mail request on him. “It is
absolutely untrue. I don't even know who this Gadzama is. You can ask him if he
has ever met me. If they have any evidence let them produce it. I have worked
hard to produce guidelines to ensure a level playing field in the elections. If
no one would give me credit for this they should at least grant that I would
not subvert my own hard work. But this is Nigeria. But I thank you for asking
me, which is pleasantly surprising.”